I'd only been with the kids for five hours, but I was exhausted.  I'd forgotten how much work little kids could be.  Joey had been an only child, so I'd never had two at the same time.  Alex was mostly potty trained, but had had an accident in the afternoon.  She still needed a lot of help.

I collapsed on the couch, hearing music blaring from down the hall.  I scrubbed a hand over my face, shuddering at the thought of making dinner.  Take-out it was.  After relaxing for a few moments, I wandered back to Joey's room and knocked.  She paused her music as I poked my head in.

"I'm too tired to cook," I told her.  "Where do you wanna order from?"

"Fresco's?" she requested.

"Pepperoni?" I asked and she nodded.

"What happened with the Richards?" she asked hesitantly.

"We'll talk about it at dinner," I told her, shifting my weight.  "But Pippa and I are sharing custody."

"Sharing custody?" she asked, confused.  I nodded and rubbed at the back of my head. 

"Not ideal, obviously," I said.  "I'll call you when the pizza's here."

I dialed up Fresco's and ordered a large pizza and breadsticks.  Forty-five minutes later, it arrived.  I yelled for Joey and she joined me at the table after grabbing two pieces of pizza and a breadstick.

"So...the kids will live here sometimes?"

I nodded as I finished chewing.  "The judge said Pippa and I can arrange it however we want.  They could live with us half time, or however we decide to arrange it.  We'll both have to get lawyers to work it out."

"Don't...don't you, like, hate her?" she asked, peeling off a pepperoni and putting it in her mouth.

"I don't hate her," I clarified.  "She's just unfairly blamed me for her brother's problems."

"The one who tried out for Hamilton?"

"That's the one," I said.

"It's not your fault he's a spaz."

"Exactly," I agreed.  "Did you serve your in-school suspension today?"

"Yep," she said, cracking open her soda.  "I should get in trouble more often.  I'm ahead in my readings for class, and got a good start on my project for Social Studies."

"I wouldn't make a habit out of it," I told her.  "And what was that about you getting detentions from your Social Studies teacher?"

She scoffed as she chewed.  "He was talking about World War II and never even talked about women's roles.  I called him sexist."

"Joey, you can't insult teachers like that," I told her.  "You need to be respectful."

"But isn't it disrespectful to the women who served our country not to mention their contributions?" she asked.  There was the lawyer in her.

I raised my eyebrows at her.  "Be nice."

She giggled a little and we continued eating.  The conversation shifted to the weekend, when she'd be back at her mother's house.  Joey's mother and I had divorced when she was about four.  We'd been college sweethearts, but married too young when we both were different.  She and I got along just fine, but Joey was reaching the age when she was starting to fight with her mother a lot.  Clarita was a lawyer and Joey had inherited her fighting spirit.  The two of them sparring could get quite heated.

After Joey had gone back to her room to finish homework, I called up Pippa with a few things on my mind.

"Are her parents taking care of the funeral?" I asked her, wondering whether anyone was taking care of the arrangements.

"Yes," she reported.  "I talked to her mom earlier.  They're making arrangements upstate."

I knew she came from Rochester, so I imagined the funeral and burial would take place there.  The kids were so young that we weren't sure it would be appropriate to take them.  Still, we wanted to go and pay our respects.

We talked about the next day.  I'd go shopping for beds in the morning then come over to take care of the kids for a while.  Joey wanted to see the kids, so she'd come over after school.  We hung up and I headed to bed.

____

The next morning, Joey emerged from the bathroom looking immaculate as usual.  Every hair in place, her makeup perfectly done.  I wished she wouldn't wear makeup just yet, but my ex convinced me it was perfectly normal.  It was a small battle I chose not to fight.  Joey was a good kid overall, and that's what mattered.

She grabbed a breakfast bar from the cabinet and asked to borrow five bucks.

"For what?"

"Starbucks," she said.

"You don't need Starbucks," I told her.

"Daaad!" she complained.  In some ways she seemed so grown up, but in other ways she was still a child.

"Daaaad!" I mocked her.  "You don't need that much caffeine.  Have some orange juice."

"Orange juice blows," she said, grabbing her backpack.

"Eloquently put," I commented and she rolled her eyes.  "Are you coming to Pippa's after school?"

"Yes," she said.  "Is Elliott going to be there?"

"Well, he lives there, so probably," I told her, grabbing my mug of coffee.

"Ugghhh, those kids shouldn't be subjected to his B.O.," she countered as she pulled on her backpack straps.  I chuckled and told her to have a good day.

I went to the same store Pippa had gone to and ordered the exact same furniture.  I figured that might make things a little less confusing for them.  The kids wouldn't be with me for a few more days probably so there was no rush on delivery.  It would come in about three days.  I went to Target next and found some bedding, toys, and some groceries.  Jack was pretty easy but I had to guess a bit at Alex's preferences.  I'm sure my parents would spoil her with toys in the coming weeks and months.

When I arrived at Pippa's with lunch for us, Alex was on the floor crying as Pippa made Jack a bottle.  She looked stressed out.  I set the food on the counter and sat on the floor next to Alex cross-legged.  I reached out and rubbed her back gently.

"Sweetheart, what's wrong?" I asked her gently.  She turned her head to look at me and mumbled something incoherent.  I scooped her up and brought her into my lap.  "Try again."

"I want Goldfish crackers and Pippa won't wet me!" she complained, rubbing her eyes and crying.

"Well, that's probably because it's almost lunchtime," I explained patiently.  "But I just brought you some.  I heard you like mac & cheese.  Is that right?"

She nodded her head.  "Uh-huh."

"Good," I kissed her head and carefully stood up with her.  I adjusted her on my hip and began unloading the bag on the counter as I talked to her.  Soon I had her set up on her new booster seat at the table, eating her lunch.

"Thank you," Pippa said, looking a bit overwhelmed.

"No problem," I told her, holding out my hands to take the baby.  "Why don't you sit down and eat.  I've got Jack."

She thanked me again and sat down with her soup and salad.  I walked around the kitchen as I fed Jack his bottle, gently bouncing him every now and then.  As I looked down at his chubby face, I wondered how much he understood.  Babies didn't have a sense of time, really.  Did he think his mom and dad were just away?  Did he even care who was holding him as long as he got fed and changed?  I realized this little guy would never know his amazing parents; only through stories.  I was determined to keep their memory alive for him and Alex.

Alex was apparently done because she began backbending over her booster, her brown hair almost reaching the floor.

"Alexandra, sit up please," Pippa asked her.  The toddler complied and did a little seat dance.  Surely she didn't understand what was really happening.  To her, it probably just felt like a visit so far.

I asked Alex if she was done and she nodded, so I got a washcloth and wiped off her messy hands and face, then helped her down.  Immediately, she ran to her toys.  I sat down with my own lunch and ate as I held Jack.  Pippa and I chatted, but whenever we had to converse it seemed almost painful to her.  It had been almost two years since her brother had attempted suicide, but the wounds still seemed fresh to her.

Jack fell asleep in my arms after a good burp, so I took him to his new crib for a nap.  With Alex playing quietly and Pippa cleaning up the kitchen, I decided it might be a good time to clear the air.

"Hey, Pip?" I asked hesitantly.  "Can we talk?"

"Sure," she said, scrubbing the counter with a sponge.

"Can we sit down?"

She looked up at me and saw I was serious.  She nodded and tossed the sponge in the sink.  We both sat down, facing the living room so we could keep an eye on Alex.

"Listen," I began.  "I just wanted to clear the air.  What happened with your brother was terrible.  And I'm sorry it happened, but I still feel like you're holding a grudge against me."

She immediately looked annoyed at my having brought it up.  It was a delicate subject.  "Lin, what you did was unforgivable."

Ouch.  Apparently, she still hates me.

"Pippa, I had to make decisions based on what was best for the show," I explained.  "George just wasn't right for the part."

"He was perfect and you know it," Pippa countered fiercely.  "You crushed him, Lin."

"I'm sorry he took it so hard, but-"

"Save it," she spat, getting up from her chair.  "He's just barely making it through life and I don't want to hear your half-assed apologies."

"Pip-"

She walked over to the living room and sat on the floor with Alex, joining in with the game she was playing with her dolls.  I saw tears in her eyes and immediately felt guilty. 

Pippa went out after Jack took a nap, so I was at her place with Alex.  We colored at the table together as we listened to some kiddie music.  It was truly terrible, but it kept her happy.  Around 3:30, Joey walked through the door and her face lit up at the sight of her little friend.

"Alex!" she squealed, squatting down to receive the running toddler.  Alex laughed and crashed in her arms.  Joey pretended she'd knocked her over, bringing her down as they both cackled.  A couple minutes later, Elliott walked in and saw Joey, looking instantly perturbed.

"Hi, Elliott," I greeted him.

"Hi, Lin," he said, slipping off his backpack.  He went straight to the pantry for a snack. 

"How's school?" I asked.

"Fine," he said as he grabbed a fistful of cookies.  He immediately disappeared to his bedroom and I heard music moments later.  Typical teenage boy, I figured.

Pippa returned a half hour or so later and began making dinner.  It was a full house with four kids between us.  I offered to help Pippa with the cooking but she declined so I played with Alex on the floor.  The six of us sat around the table as Pippa and Elliott set out the plates.  Elliott and Joey had daggers for each other.

"So, Josephine," Pippa began, spreading out her napkin on her lap.  "You play a lot of sports don't you?"

She finished sipping from her water and nodded.  "Softball and soccer so far," she said.  "I'd like to play football but we have to convince the school board to let us."

Elliott muttered something under his breath and Joey shot him a look.

"Unfortunately we have a lot of push back from the players," she growled, not taking her eyes off Elliott.

"I heard that," Pippa said.  "But you're on the debate team, right?  I'm sure you'll have a good argument."

"Yes, I've been doing my research.  There are tons of schools that let girls play so I'm studying how they got to change their schools' minds."

"That's very impressive, Josephine," she complimented my daughter.

"Joey," she politely correctly her.

"Mom, it's Homecoming this Friday," Elliott reminded his mother.  "Can I go?"

"How's your science grade?" she asked her son.  He rolled his eyes.  "Let's talk after dinner."

"Dad said I could go," he argued.

"We'll talk after dinner," she shot him a look as she prodded some broccoli.

Alex had chicken nuggets that were shaped like little dinosaurs.  Instead of eating, she was playing with them, making them roar and fight.

"Alex, can you take a bite, please?" I asked her.  She dramatically made the dinosaur walk to the edge of the plate, fly in the air, and land its head in her mouth.  She gnashed her teeth, chewing with her mouth open.  I gently corrected her.  "Mouth closed."

She giggled as she looked at me and chewed.  When dinner ended, Joey offered to help with dishes and Pippa gladly accepted.  Elliott rolled his eyes and went to his room, moody.  I got the bath running for the kids before it was time for us to leave.

"Joey, why don't you get your stuff together," I told my daughter.  "It's about time for us to head out."

She nodded and stood up to find her backpack and shoes.  We kissed the kids goodbye and then went back to our own place.

"Are we gonna do this every night?" Joey asked me as we walked in.

"Maybe for the first couple weeks," I told her as I toed my shoes off.  "You don't have to come every time."

"Can't they come here?" she asked, scrolling through her phone.

"Eventually, yes," I said.  "But for right now they need some normalcy.  Going back and forth between houses will be too confusing."

Joey leaned against the kitchen island.  "Poor kids," she commented.

I nodded as I grabbed a beer from the fridge.  "They don't seem to understand yet."

"Are you taking them to the funeral?"

I shook my head as I popped the top off on the counter.  "They're too young."

"I could babysit," she offered.

"You don't want to go?" I asked.

"I hate funerals," she said.

"Well, if you don't mind that would be great," I told her, then took a long swig of beer.  She nodded and started wandering to her room.

"Homework calls," she told me, then disappeared.  I collapsed on the couch, putting my feet up on the coffee table and slowly enjoyed my beer.  It gave me a nice buzz and helped me relax a little after a long day.

____

The next day was about the same, spending part of the day at Pippa's.

"We should take them to your house over the weekend," she said.  "So they can get used to it before they stay there."

I nodded in agreement.  They'd been there before but it had been a while.  Both had been adjusting well to the new situation, but didn't really comprehend it.  The co-funeral was set for the next day.

When it was time to go, I knelt down next to Alex and told her Pippa and I would be leaving for a while.  She was playing happily on the floor with my daughter at our place.  She was distracted by all the new toys, plus she was crazy about Joey.

I reminded Joey to call me with any problems and left her to watch the kids.  We shared an Uber to Rochester and the silence between us was palpable.  Pippa nodded off, exhausted from the demands of two small children.  She was taking on the brunt of the work since they were staying at her place.

As we neared the address we'd given for the funeral home, I gently woke Pippa by squeezing her shoulder.  She stretched and touched up her makeup with her pocket mirror.

"You doing okay?" I asked tentatively.

"Am I doing okay?" she repeated in an unkind tone.  "Two of my best friends just died.  I've had a total of ten hours sleep the last two nights and my son is failing his sophomore year of high school.  No, I am not okay."

"Elliott's failing?" I asked.

She sighed and looked out the window.  "Really, it's on his dad.  When he's with him, there are no rules.  He spends the whole evening playing video games and pigging out on junk food.  He's in danger of losing his spot on the football team."

"Damn," I commented.  Elliott was a sharp kid.  He had to be if he was a student at Hunter.  They only accepted the best of the best.  The kid was just being lazy, apparently.  "Sorry to hear that."

We pulled into the parking lot, where there were dozens of cars already.  "If you want me to take the kids for a few days, I can," I offered.  "I know it's not ideal for them, but if you need some space-"

"I'm fine," she said shortly as the car came to a stop.  I paid the driver.  Pip said she'd QuickPay me on Chase later.  I sighed and got out, watching Pippa walk quickly towards the door.  If she was fine, why did she mention it in the first place?  Women continued to puzzle me.  I sighed and followed her into the funeral home, the last place on earth I wanted to be.